Industrial: AI advanced packaging iteration acceleration, glass substrate celebrates the upturn.

Industrial released a research report stating that the iteration of AI computing power is driving advanced packaging transformation, and the glass substrate is ushering in the industrial year of 2026, with the certainty of high industry growth becoming increasingly evident. The training of AI large models is driving rapid iteration of high-end CPUs, GPUs, HBM storage, and Chiplet heterogeneous integration. Traditional organic carrier boards have high frequency losses and are prone to warping due to their large size, while the cost of silicon interposer layers is high and the process is complex, highlighting the continued bottleneck of the two traditional materials. With its excellent material properties, the glass substrate has become the core alternative base material for the next generation of high-end advanced packaging. Since Intel introduced the industry's first glass substrate packaging roadmap in 2023, overseas leading companies have been expanding their layout. The main points of Industrial are as follows: Material performance is leading across the board, and the glass substrate is reshaping the value system of advanced packaging Glass substrates surpass silicon and organic materials in key indicators such as surface roughness, thermal expansion coefficient, Young's modulus, and moisture absorption, providing an ideal carrier for high-density RDL wiring and large chiplet packaging. In terms of packaging efficiency, rectangular glass substrates can significantly increase chip utilization while reducing the risks of warping and yield rates. With the gradual maturity of key processes such as TGV vias and metalized via filling, glass substrates are becoming the preferred base material for high-end scenarios such as AI servers and high-speed CPO optical modules. The industrial chain barriers are clearly divided, with midstream processing technology and high-end equipment as the core competitive barriers The industry has formed a mature industrial structure of "upstream basic support - midstream deep processing finished products - downstream scene scale-up", with the core value and competitive barriers concentrated entirely in the midstream precision processing of TGV vias. The supply of upstream glass substrates is flexible, mainly limited by the formulation and process constraints of the glass motherboards, while the processing of TGV vias is constrained by high-end equipment and supporting processes such as ultra-fast lasers, precision coating, and high deep-hole metallization. The overseas monopoly has been long-term, leaving ample room for domestic alternatives. Midstream processes such as TGV vias, non-through-hole electroplating copper filling, CMP planarization, and precision RDL wiring are the core moats that determine product yield, performance, and mass production capability. Overseas giants have clear production schedules, and domestic leading company BOE accelerates industry breakthroughs Leading overseas companies have clear industrialization schedules, with Intel transforming its US factories to establish the world's first glass substrate production base and launching mature packaging samples in 2026 and scaling up production capacity in 2027. TSMC has set up a CoPoS glass substrate trial production line and is expected to achieve large-scale production in 2-3 years, while Samsung has partnered with Sumitomo Chemical to layout core materials and plans to start production after 2027. China's panel leader BOE signed a cooperation memorandum with Corning in May 2026, focusing on deep cooperation in core areas such as glass substrate packaging carriers and optical interconnections, accelerating the technological breakthroughs and industrialization of glass substrates, becoming a core force in China's pursuit of overseas giants and layout of advanced glass substrate packaging. Three core products are precisely matched to high-end scenarios, covering the booming tracks of computing power, storage, and optical communication The core value of the market is concentrated in TGV deep processing glass products, forming three irreplaceable core products that precisely address industry pain points: 1) Glass packaging carriers, replacing traditional ABF organic carriers, suitable for large-size packaging of AI server CPUs/GPUs, supporting trillion-transistor-level chip integration, reducing high-frequency signal losses and packaging warping risks; 2) Glass interposer layers, suitable for HBM4/HBM5 ultra-high-stacked packaging, matching CTE with silicon and DRAM, significantly improving the yield and stability of multi-layer stacking, becoming the core alternative solution for Samsung and SK Hynix HBM advanced packaging; 3) CPO optoelectronic substrates, achieving integrated electro-optical integration, meeting the low-loss transmission requirements of 1.6T/3.2T ultra-high-speed optical modules, opening up long-term incremental space for high-speed optical communication. The domestic glass substrate packaging industry chain is well established, achieving synchronous breakthroughs in technology and capacity across all stages Glass substrate packaging manufacturers include JCET Group Co., Ltd., BOE, TongFu Microelectronics, Shenzhen Tianma, Shenzhen Fastprint Circuit Tech; glass substrate providers include WG Tech (JiangXi) Group, BOE Optoelectronics, Caihong Display Devices, GABRIELLE, Triumph Science & Technology; laser equipment manufacturers include Suzhou Delphi Laser, Wuhan DR Laser Technology Corp., Han's Laser Technology Industry Group, Sai MicroElectronics Inc., Hubei W-Olf Photoelectric Technology, Zhejiang Lante Optics, Ledman Optoelectronic, Hgtech; through-hole filling manufacturers include Shanghai Skychem Technology, Jiangsu Leadmicro Nano Technology, Kunshan Dongwei Technology; and post-process inspection manufacturers include Suzhou Secote Precision Electronic. Risk warning: 1) Risks of intensified industry competition; 2) Glass substrate market growth may not meet expectations; 3) Advanced glass substrate packaging technology may progress slower than expected.